At a ceremony at Trevarno on Saturday 16 April, the Helston Railway Preservation Company was formally awarded the Ian Allan Publishing Heritage Railway of the Year by David Allan, Chairman of Ian Allan Publishing. Accompanying David were John Ellis, Chairman of National Railway Heritage Awards Committee, and John Curley, who is Sponsorship Manager with the National Railway Heritage Awards. The railway’s success had been announced at the 2010 National Railway Heritage Awards ceremony held in London on 1 December 2010.
David Allan explained that all Heritage Railways are automatically entered each year for the Ian Allan Publishing Award and a team of judges visits a number of Heritage Railways around the UK before deciding on a winner. David said the judges were impressed by the commitment and enthusiasm of the volunteers at the Helston Railway and said the Award was thoroughly deserved having come so far in such a short period of time.
Stuart Walker, Director of the Helston Railway Preservation Co Ltd said: ‘It was great to have our volunteers’ hard work recognised by the major transport publisher Ian Allan and to be visited by members of the National Railway Heritage Awards committee. They were very impressed with the amount of work we have done over the last six years, particularly when we showed them the photographs of the overgrown abandoned track bed when we first started work. The transformation to Trevarno station in such a short term is entirely down to our volunteers, everyone who has contributed funds and Trevarno Estate for agreeing to let us recreate the railway on their land.’
Pictured left to right are Ken Wood (President Helston Railway), Stuart Walker (Director Helston Railway), Matthew Laugher (one of the railway’s youngest volunteers), David Allan (Ian Allan Publishing) and John Ellis (National Railway Heritage Awards).
